Community Cinema Program

Welcome to tonight's screening of Community Cinema goodies!

We have come together to watch some documentaries on the "State of the World" and possible solutions, and then discuss what we thought about it and how we intend to respond to this information on a local level.

What follows is a brief synopsis of the programs available on tonight's DVD, so that we can get an idea of what's on offer and make a decision on what we want to view tonight, which can be moderated by your host. You can always request a copy of the DVD for your private use. Please be aware that this format is under constant development and that any suggestions for improvements can easily put in place by your screening host. This is your cinema after all!

Tonight's DVD is "InfoPack July 2006"

911 Loose Change, 2nd edition - 81 mins

The first edition was great, the second is even better. The young person speaking to the images and information presented in this video is calm and clear. He offers information that is worthy of your consideration if you are seeking the truth about the events of the day. This film will leave you in the healthy place of having many unanswered questions.

9/11 and the American Empire David Ray Griffin - 81 mins

On 18 April 2005, 450 people gathered at the University of Wisconsin, Madison for an event hosted by the newly formed Muslim, Jewish, Christian Alliance. This is a film of that talk. In it David Ray Griffin, a leading and respected Christian Theologian, describes the present understanding (held by many) of what actually happened on that day. He also made it clear what growing numbers of that countries leaders think about their country’s government, military and media.

He carefully covers all the points of view held by different portions of the American (and global populations). No matter what your understandings are about the events of this date, or what your view of the current politics and military of any country are, you are likely to find them reflected here. You may also find yourself being gently stretched to see the events from other persepectives. In case you wanted to persue this subject further after watching this film, here is the complete transcript of David Ray Griffin’s talk, complete with footnotes.

Denial Stops Here - Michael Ruppert - 120 mins

This is probably the most comprehensive presentation of information, which ties together many different elements in the global picture, of where we are and what we might expect. Michael Ruppert has been making geo-political predictions for a couple of decades and is on the mark way more often than not. Topics covered: 911 and its coverup, Peak Oil, Global Warming, The War in Iraq, Economic Turmoil and the (US) housing bubble, Africa, South America, China (wowee zowee!), Permaculture, sustainability and community reliance. I recommend watching it with friends!

Power of Community - 59 mins

When Cuba's oil imports reduced by 50% and their economy crashed over a two week period in 1989 it put Cuba into a state of shock. There were frequent blackouts in its oil-fed electric power grid, up to 16 hours per day. The average daily caloric intake in Cuba dropped by a third... So Cubans started to grow local organic produce out of necessity, developed bio-pesticides and bio-fertilizers as petrochemical substitutes, and incorporated more fruits and vegetables into their diets. Since they couldn't fuel their aging cars, they walked, biked, rode buses, and carpooled. This film offers inspiration and hope, it is a solutions based film for people who see what's coming, but are not sure how to respond. My advice: think about where your food is going to come from in the coming years.

The Revolution will not be be Televised - 75 mins

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was elected to the presidency in 1998. His platform called for a wholesale rejection of globalization and what he called the "savage project of neo-liberalism" - which had been embraced by President Carlos Andres Perez - to be replaced with a radical nationalism that appealed to the country's impoverished majority. So it shouldn't have come as much of a surprise that a coup was engineered by supporters of past president Carlos Andres Perez. The good fortune of the Irish filmmakers who were in the country making a documentary on Chavez meant that the entire process, as recorded in interviews and footage from both sides (something the country's media wasnt adept at) gave a clear picture of how the coup was orchestrated.

The Yes Men - 82 mins

The Yes Men, a movie, follows a couple of anti-corporate activist-pranksters as they impersonate World Trade Organization spokesmen on TV and at business conferences around the world. The story follows Andy and Mike from their beginnings with GWBush.com, and on to their tasteless parody of the WTO's website. Some visitors don’t notice the site is a fake, and send speaking invitations meant for the real WTO. Mike and Andy play along with the ruse and soon find themselves attending important functions as WTO representatives.

Delighted to speak for the organization they oppose, Andy and Mike don thrift-store suits and set out to shock their unwitting audiences with darkly comic satires on global free trade. Weirdly, the experts don’t notice the joke and seem to agree with every terrible idea the two can come up with.

Exhausted by their failed attempts to shock, Mike and Andy take a whole new approach for one final lecture.

We - the Unauthorised Arundhati Roy - 64 mins

An anonymous masterpiece. Taking audio and video footage of Arundhati Roy's Come September speech. This film combines music and deeply moving images to support her words. It is constructed in such a way as to give lots of breathing space to feel her message in its fullness. For links and praise of this film:

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More information on these and other documentaries can be found here: http://iiahr.blogspot.com/ Kudos go to James on Waiheke for developing this format and supplying most of the material as well as the synopsis. His blog is here: http://ydaysfuture.blogspot.com/